Secure verification of claims

A computer-program product for use in conjunction with a computer system, the computer-program product comprising a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium and a computer-program mechanism embedded therein to verify a claim associated with an online transaction, the computer-program mechanism including instructions for:

• receiving, by operation of a processor, claim information for the claim, wherein the claim information includes an attribute characterizing a seller related to an online advertisement;
• determining, by the processor, verification information associated with the claim information by accessing a plurality of accounts over a network, each account of the plurality of accounts providing an online source of information characterizing the seller, wherein at least one of the plurality of accounts is associated with an application, and wherein the accessing is authorized in advance by the seller;
• verifying, by the processor, the claim by confirming the claim information against the verification information;
• once the claim is verified, generating, by the processor, a plurality of views of the verification information for presentation on a user interface, each view including a subset of the verification information and a reference to the online advertisement, wherein the plurality of views includes at least a first view and a second view, wherein the subset included in the first view differs from the subset included in the second view, wherein each of the first view and the second view comprises a digitally-signed certificate, and wherein the second view includes a link which, when selected by a potential customer, causes a message containing a code to be sent to the seller, wherein the code allows the seller to confirm the seller's identity to the potential customer;
• receiving, by the processor, a request from a computing device associated with the potential customer to access the verification information;
• receiving, by the processor, authorization from the seller for the potential customer to access the second view but not to access the first view;
• allowing, by the processor, based on the authorization, access by the potential customer to the second view;
• providing, by the processor, the second view to the computing device for display to the potential customer;
• receiving, by the processor and from the computing device, a selection of the link;
• and
• sending, by the processor in response to the selection, the message containing the code to the seller.

A computer system, comprising:

• a processor;
• memory;
• and
• a program module, wherein the program module is stored in the memory and configurable to be executed by the processor to verify a claim associated with an online transaction, the program module including instructions for:
• receiving, by operation of the processor, claim information for the claim, wherein the claim information includes an attribute characterizing a seller related to an online advertisement;
• determining, by the processor, verification information associated with the claim information by accessing a plurality of accounts over a network, each account of the plurality of accounts providing an online source of information characterizing the seller, wherein at least one of the plurality of accounts is associated with an application, and wherein the accessing is authorized in advance by the seller;
• verifying, by the processor, the processor, the claim by confirming the claim information against the verification information;
• once the claim is verified, generating, by the processor, a plurality of views of the verification information for presentation on a user interface, each view including a subset of the verification information and a reference to the online advertisement, wherein the plurality of views includes at least a first view and a second view, wherein the subset included in the first view differs from the subset included in the second view, wherein each of the first view and the second view comprises a digitally-signed certificate, and wherein the second view includes a link which, when selected by a potential customer, causes a message containing a code to be sent to the seller, wherein the code allows the seller to confirm the seller's identity to the potential customer;
• receiving, by the processor, a request from a computing device associated with the potential customer to access the verification information;
• receiving, by the processor, authorization from the seller for the potential customer to access the second view but not to access the first view;
• allowing, by the processor, based on the authorization access by the potential customer to the second view,
• providing, by the processor, the second view to the computing device for display to the potential customer;
• receiving, by the processor and from the computing device, a selection of the link, and
• sending, by the processor in response to the selection, the message containing the code to the seller.